This invention relates to suction devices for medical purposes, and in particular to a covered suction device with a retractable, protective sheath with a tip protector secured to the sheath. A housing for the sheath, when retracted, is also provided.
Suction devices, for aspirating fluids from the body, are well known. Such suction devices typically include an elongated suction tube which is connectable at one end to a source of suction. The other end includes a tip having one or more holes leading to the suction tube to aid in aspiration as the suction device is being used.
The problem with prior suction devices is contamination. Suction devices are typically used over a period of time, and once first used, the device is contaminated. If the device is not protected in some manner, once it has been used, if it is laid aside for later use, it can further become contaminated by ambient contaminants, and transfer those contaminants to the patient the next time that it is used. Conversely, once it has been used on a sick patient, whatever ailment that is suffered by the patient can be passed from the suction device to whatever surface upon which it might be laid between uses, leading to contamination transferred from the patient to others. It is therefore important that the suction device be protected in some manner, both to protect the patient as well as others.
In the past, protection has been by means of providing a sterile surface upon which the suction device can be placed between uses. While that generally is satisfactory for largely eliminating passage of any contaminants from the patient, with the suction device being open to the ambient surroundings between uses, it still is subject to contamination by the surroundings, with that contamination then being passed back to the patient the next time that the suction device is used. Furthermore, once the device is contaminated by whatever means, returning it to a sterile surface contaminates the surface, and conversely, once the surface is contaminated, that can also be passed to a sterile device.
In U.S. Pat. No. 6,500,142, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference, and which is assigned to the assignee of the present application, a covered suction device is provided which is a substantial improvement over those of the prior art. The present invention improves upon that of the '142 Patent, providing a simpler means to protect the suction tip and better means of accommodating the retracted sheath.